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Edwards reality show seeks state tax credits

Former Louisiana governor Edwin Edwards and his wife, Trina Scott Edwards, attend a luncheon for a Council For a Better Louisiana in Baton Rouge on Dec. 12. Edwards and his wife, Trina, get their own reality show starting in February on the A&E cable network.

Jeremy AlfordCapitol Correspondent

Published: Monday, January 21, 2013 at 9:15 a.m.

Last Modified: Monday, January 21, 2013 at 9:15 a.m.

BATON ROUGE—Taxpayer-supported incentives may become available for an A&E reality show co-starring former Gov. Edwin Edwards, said an official with Louisiana Economic Development.

Former Louisiana governor Edwin Edwards and his wife, Trina Scott Edwards, attend a luncheon for a Council For a Better Louisiana in Baton Rouge on Dec. 12. Edwards and his wife, Trina, get their own reality show starting in February on the A&E cable network.

Under the motion picture incentive program, projects that spend at least $300,000 in the state may be eligible for one tax credit equivalent to 30 percent of their total eligible in-state costs that are directly related to the production and an additional credit on their Louisiana resident payroll worth 5 percent.

So far, Edwards' planned reality show, with a working title of “The Governor's Wife,” has only applied for the program, said Christopher Stelly, executive director of LED's entertainment division.

It is uncertain what benefits the reality show, produced by Leftfield Pictures, will receive, if any, he said, and LED is still in the process of reviewing the application.

“Our initial review suggests that the project likely will be eligible for the program after the applicant wraps up the administrative requirements for initial certification,” Stelly said.

He added that “no tax credits will be issued until after filming has occurred and audited expenditure reports have been reviewed and approved.”

Even if the show receives initial certification, it does not guarantee the issuance of any tax credits from the state, Stelly said.

If nothing else, the timing is interesting, with sitting Gov. Bobby Jindal proposing a major tax overhaul package that would eliminate income tax in exchange for greater sales taxes.

Leading to this year's regular session, which convenes April 8, lawmakers and the administration have been reviewing the value of tax incentives such as the one Edwards' reality show is pursuing.

A&E says Edwards will star alongside Trina Scott Edwards, the woman he married upon being released from federal prison. Together they have four children from previous marriages, ranging in age from 62 to 13.

After serving four terms as governor, Edwards was convicted of racketeering charges in 2001 for rigging riverboat gambling licenses.

A&E says the project will be a “12-episode docuseries following the 85-year-old ‘King of Louisiana' and his 34-year-old wife and their children.”

Launching Feb. 27 at 10 p.m., the show will “follow Trina as she attempts to fit into the former governor's world and social life while trying to get along with his daughters—who are twice her age—as she juggles her two teenage sons.”

The couple's efforts to conceive will reportedly be part of the show as well.

The program joins A&E's “unscripted slate” that already includes “Duck Dynasty,” which is filmed in north Louisiana, “Hoarders,” “Intervention” and the upcoming “Be the Boss.”

Despite the popularity of Louisiana-based reality shows, Stelly said in the roughly 10-year history of the incentive program, only about 1 percent of the projects involved have been associated with reality programming.

Jeremy Alford can be reached at jeremy@jeremyalford.com.

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